*This is a full-time, hybrid position. During your 6-month probationary period, you will be required to work on-site for at least 3 days per week at Merit's office location in Ann Arbor, MI. Following, working on-site will be required for a minimum of 2 days per week.

The Senior Research Systems Analyst will play a critical role in Merit's Research and Development team, leading projects in communication networks, network security, and advanced data analytics. You will be the primary bridge between the research and IT teams supporting experiments with researchers, then working with IT to operationalize them within production infrastructure. A key focus will sustain and scale Merit's national-scale network telescope infrastructure, ensuring it remains a world-class research asset that can produce high-value, grant-attracting data.

You will blend technical operations, research collaboration, and administrative oversight to support both  ORION Network Telescope - Merit and National Distributed Network Telescope (NDNT) and long-term strategic growth. You will work hands-on with complex systems, perform data collection and analysis, and coordinate efforts to position Merit as a host for a national research asset that creates sustained funding.

Strategic Goals for the Role

• Sustain and scale the Network Telescope infrastructure to ensure reliability, security, and research readiness.
• Increase the volume, quality, and accessibility of grant-attracting datasets.
• Contribute to planning for future Merit research projects.

Essential functions for this position are followed by an (E).

Research Support & Data Management (45%)

• Support internal and external researchers by provisioning and managing user environments, virtual machines, and access credentials. (E)
• Lead the administration, monitoring, and lifecycle management of telescope and research systems in collaboration with IT, ensuring system uptime, data accuracy, and timely response to technical issues. (E)
• Curate and manage large-scale research datasets, ensuring data fidelity, accessibility, documentation quality, and analytical value. (E)
• Support grant-funded research projects and contribute to new funding proposals by identifying opportunities and providing data insights. (E)
• Analyze telescope data to extract research findings and collaborate with research staff to interpret results, develop analytical tools, and contribute to technical reports, presentations, proposals, and peer-reviewed publications. (E)

Systems Planning, Analysis, and Design (40%)

• Collaborate with researchers to design and refine network measurement experiments, system architectures, and data collection processes. (E)
• Plan and coordinate the application of complex information systems and data engineering techniques to support all research projects.
• Perform advanced analysis and forecasting of research computing and data processing requirements; prepare feasibility studies and system design specifications to meet evolving user needs.
• Design and document architectures for research data platforms, specifying system goals and requirements to enable scalable, multi-institutional collaborations. (E)
• Collaborate with other Merit departments to investigate, recommend, and facilitate the acquisition of hardware, software, and virtualization platforms to support program goals. (E)
• Be the primary liaison translating research goals into enterprise-ready information system designs, ensuring compliance, scalability, and operational viability.
• Oversee configuration and optimization of network devices, configuration interfaces, routing, and monitoring system health, working collaboratively with IT. (E)
• Implement and maintain monitoring tools for early anomaly detection in infrastructure or data streams, and develop comprehensive operational documentation to support maintenance, compliance, and knowledge transfer. (E)
• Perform on-call support for production systems including problem investigations, escalation, resolution, and communication with IT and external researchers. (E)
• Coordinate development, configuration, and refinement of complex data applications for the Network Telescope program, including comprehensive workflow testing and resolution of system and application anomalies.
• Maintain standards for research computing systems documentation, configuration, and data life-cycle governance. (E)

Leadership, Collaboration, and Strategic Impact (15%)

• Engage with other teams and external research partners to maintain and enhance telescope capabilities.
• Provide project leadership and technical direction on research data infrastructure projects; may mentor junior technical contributors.
• Support strategic planning to position Merit as a national hub for research data, including contributions to funding proposals and external collaboration projects.
• Represent Merit Research at professional meetings, communicating system capabilities and research support innovations.

Other Responsibilities

Please note this job description is not designated to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities or responsibilities that are required of you for this job. Responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Supervisory Responsibility

You will have no supervisory responsibilities.

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office environment. You will use standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, cloud-based systems, and AV/teleconferencing software and equipment.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee (with or without accommodations) to perform the essential functions of this job.

Employees must frequently work at computer stations, answer telephone calls, emails, and other forms of customer/client communication. Employees occasionally move items of different sizes and weights throughout the office or building.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science or a related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 5+ years of experience in applied computer science, networking, or related fields.
• Experience with configuration management software, such as Puppet, Chef, or Ansible.
• Hands-on experience administering and configuring Linux-based systems in a production environment.
• Experience using version control systems (e.g., Git) for collaborative development.
• Experience with network device configuration, including switching and routing equipment, and networking protocols.
• Demonstrated experience in network administration and network research.
• Experience developing code in languages (e.g., Go, Python or C/C++ software) in a UNIX environment.
• Experience with  cyber-security, data management practices, and high-performance computing environments.
• Excellent communication skills with a proven ability to bridge interdisciplinary gaps by translating complex technical information between research and IT teams.
• Experience with packet capture frameworks (e.g., PF_RING).

• Experience with Big Data platforms (e.g., Google BigQuery), large-scale storage systems, and public/research cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP).
• Experience with distributed systems (e.g., prior interaction with ZeroMQ or other messaging passing frameworks).
• Experience with large-scale storage systems.
• Experience making presentations to technical and other audiences.
• Experience contributing to grant proposals or supporting sponsored research efforts.
• Experience working with higher education, K-12 educational institutions, libraries, research institutions, governmental organizations, and other public sector non-profit organizations.
• Experience performing systems analysis, preparing feasibility studies, or developing technical design specifications for large-scale projects.

This is a full-time, hybrid position. Though the typical work schedule is 8am - 5pm, Monday through Friday for most staff, your work schedule will be determined with your supervisor and may change if necessary.

During your 6-month probationary period, you will be required to work on-site for at least 3 days per week at Merit's office location:

880 Technology Dr., Suite B

Ann Arbor, MI 48108

Following, working on-site will be required for a minimum of 2 days per week. In addition, ad-hoc on-site meetings and events may be needed with adequate notice provided.

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

There may be some occasional work required outside of the established schedule, which may include evenings, weekends and holidays.

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

Travel

Travel for conferences and events will be required.

Starting salary range is $100,000-$115,000, depending on experience and credentials.

Enjoy comprehensive benefits that support your health, well-being, and future, including:

• Full access to medical and dental insurance for you and your eligible dependents
• Generous 2:1 retirement matching to help you plan for your long-term goals
• Paid vacation, sick time, holidays, and additional paid time off to support work-life balance
• Access to a variety of well-being programs, resources, and campus perks
• Professional development opportunities and educational assistance to further your career

And more discover the complete benefits package at careers.umich.edu/benefits

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.